It had been about four months since the leaving ceremony, and it was midsummer.
Let’s be honest, summer is the worst season for furry cat people.
Although the roads here are all dirt roads, surrounded by fields, and the entire village is surrounded by forests, which should be cooler than the asphalt roads in Tokyo, I still want to take off my fur.
Catching rats is mainly done in the early morning. During the hot noon time, I will stay in the cool forests along the river.
I found a tree on the sloping hillside, hung a hammock, and enjoyed my siesta.
There is no need to worry about being attacked by monsters here, and the natural air conditioning effect is very cool.
When you are hungry, you go down to the river and lurk in the pools to catch fish for food.
If you catch it with an ordinary harpoon, the fish will become alert and run away, but a harpoon made with empty magic is almost invisible.
Due to continuous training and improvement, the material of the harpoon is not just solidified air.
The tip is made sharp and hard, but only on the surface, leaving the interior soft.
The handle part of the harpoon is designed to be flat so that even a weak person like me can use it easily while reducing the resistance of the water.
I lay on the rocks in the hunting ground, lowered the harpoon into the water and waited for the fish to approach.
This training is not only used to practice magic and obtain food, but also helps with future combat training, killing three birds with one stone.
Although the harpoon was still slightly visible due to the difference in refractive index, I hit the approaching fish just behind the gills with one precise blow.
The fish's intense struggle conveys the success of the hunt.
What I caught was a fish about 20 centimeters long, similar to mountain trout.
The caught fish is cut open, skewered on bamboo sticks and sprinkled with salt.
I used empty attribute magic to make a container with a round bottom, added water to become a lens, and then used sunlight to ignite a flame in preparation for salt burning.
"Umya, umya, fresh seabass, salt-roasted seabass!"
The fish was just caught, so it was very fresh, without the fishy smell of raw fish at all, and the combination of crispy skin and tender meat was very delicious.
After eating, return to the hammock for another siesta.
Summer is actually not bad either.
After waking up from my nap, I went to collect herbs.
Recently, I mainly use steps to move around, so I don’t have to worry about being attacked by monsters in the mountains.
I move about 5 meters above the ground so I have a good view and no smell.
Goblins can't reach me, so if I'm attacked, all I have to do is run away.
I used steps to move, found herbs and then dropped to the ground to collect them, and then used steps to continue moving.
Regarding escaping, I thought I had reached a sufficient level and decided to move on to the next level.
The next thing to learn is defense.
After my magic power is enhanced, I want to eat the hearts of monsters to increase my magic power, but first I have to defeat them.
Magic with empty attributes does not have as obvious attack power as fire or thunder attributes.
Although it can perform long-range attacks by moving fixed air, its lightness makes it less powerful.
Currently, the only way to defeat monsters is to engage in close combat with a spear made of empty magic.
In this way, the distance of my attack is equal to the distance of the opponent's attack.
Races with strong physiques like Oxmen or Bearmen might be able to train their bodies to withstand attacks, but this is impossible for Catmen.
I'm afraid that if I get hit by a goblin, my health will be reduced by more than half.
So, what I need now is defense.
Specifically, armor and shields.
The first thing to make is the body part of the armor.
From the neck down, the "armor" was made about one centimeter away from the body to protect the lower abdomen while not hindering the movement of the arms and legs.
The purpose of being a little away from the body is to avoid hindering movement, while increasing ventilation and reducing impact transmission.
Tried testing the armor with a rock throw, and since it was away from the body, it didn't transmit the impact at all.
By the way, when you lie down wearing the armor, you feel like your body is floating in mid-air.
If you sleep like this, you should be very comfortable, but once you lose consciousness, the armor will be removed.
To keep the contact close to the body, I also made the shield levitate.
Previously, when Miguel attacked me with fire-attribute magic, I made a "wall", and now I shrunk it down and redesigned it into a solid "shield."
Length is 1 meter, width is about 50 cm, slightly curved.
Just like the clear polycarbonate shields used by mobile teams.
The size is large enough to cover my whole body, and it's transparent so it doesn't block the view.
This set of armor and shield is the basic form. I still need to improve the material and shape, but for now, I can only choose between steps and shield.
Moreover, since stepping requires the use of magic, the shapes of shields and armor are only decorative and not strong enough.
Although I really want to fight the monsters as soon as possible, unlike the game, once I die, I can't start over.
With his current strength, he should be shattered by one blow and receive damage.
I wear armor and use steps to move around.
From an onlooker's perspective, you might just see me bouncing around in the air, but as the magic used increases, it's also consumed.
After collecting herbs from noon to evening, I was exhausted, but I was also exercising at the same time.
Go back to the river to fish and then go home.
"Grandma Carissa, take the herbs away. Just treat the fish as a service."
"It always causes you trouble. Oh, isn't this cattail grass? It looks like it's been picked very deep. Are you okay?"
"I'm paying attention, no problem. A few days ago, Zeol and the others went hunting for monsters, and they didn't see any goblins today."
Mr. Zeol, the tiger man, is an adventurer hired by the village chief. It is said that he is over fifty years old. His majesty can silence the young people in the village.
When he was young, he was active near the royal capital. It was said that he was very powerful and could even reach A level. However, he had trouble interacting with the nobles, so he retired and came to Atzka Village.
"That's good, but you still have to be careful. If you disappear, it will be very difficult for me."
Grandma Carissa had a worried expression on her face as she handed over the money for the purchase.
Although there were people besides me who brought herbs, no one distributed rats and fish to the villagers like me.
"I know. Oh, it's raining. I'm going home."
"Okay, be careful on the way home."
Although I heard thunder in the distance as I came down the mountain, it looked like the clouds were coming.
The raindrops pitter-pattered on the dry pavement, quickly turning into buckets of rain.
"Umbrella, step!"
I made a huge dome from the top of my head to my feet, using steps to walk about 50 centimeters above the ground.
I saw the villagers who were doing farm work covering their heads and running away.
The rice light flashed across the dark sky like a dragon, echoing with shocking thunder.
